People Change
by m.sharkbait.4444
Summary: Five years is a long time. Things change. Places change. People change. Wally knew that- but that didn't mean he had to like it. Post Happy New Year.


**AN: So, I'm a new **_**author**_** to the Young Justice fandom, but I'm definitely **_**not**_** a new reader. I just don't review as often as I should. (I'm terrible at them- I rarely leave them in my usual fandom.) The new season sparked the plot bunny that's currently staked out in my head, so I figured I'd publish this.**

**So, here's my response to this new season. Half of me is in love with this new season- IT'S GOT BABS! The other half **_**HATES**_** it- WHERE'S SPITFIRE? So, here's one of the plausible things that I think could've happened. And when I mean plausible, I mean out of all the reasons **_**I've**_** come up. (Which, to be honest, are all pretty crappy…)**

**Summary: Five years is a long time. Things change. Places change. People change. Wally knew that- but that didn't mean he had to like it.**

_**People Change**_

Change: (Noun) The act or instance of making or becoming different.

Or at least, that's what Google said when Wally typed it into his laptop while bored out of his mind. You'd think that being the Flash would mean he'd at least be able to kick butt while bored out of his mind, but _no._ For some diabolical reason, all the low lives and psychopaths of Central City had suddenly decided to take the day off. But Wally didn't pay attention to them- he only paid attention to one certain criminal that roamed Central…

Serendipity: (Noun) The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.

Wally snorted. "Change does _not_ cause serendipity, thank you very much…" Wally murmured to himself. He turned his head towards the open window, feeling the light breeze. Part of him expected to see _her_ watching him, only to jump away when he spotted her. But apparently she'd decided to take the night off- just like the rest of the criminals who roamed Central at night.

He sighed. Part of him wanted to put on his 'red long johns', as she'd called them, and run and find her. Maybe for once he'd be able to keep up with her for more than a mile. And then they could talk things out and maybe she'd come back to the side of angels or something.

Funny, isn't it? He's the fastest man on Earth, yet he struggles to keep up with her. Wally felt another sigh coming on. "Why, Artemis? I just don't get it… why do things have to be this way?"

"You should know."

Wally's head spun towards the window in kitchen. It connected to an old rickety fire escape, leaving Wally wondering how she'd been able to get there without him hearing. "Artemis?" He questioned, putting down the laptop and getting up to be closer to the window.

"It's Huntress now, Baywatch. Sheesh- you're the Flash, yet you don't know the different criminals that run around your city." She replied. She was leaned against the fire escapes railing. Wally pulled the curtains open and slid the window up all the way. Then, he simply leaned over the sink with his hands on either side of the basin.

"Yeah, well I never know which column to put you in- you change sides every other night." Wally replied. He took a long look at Artemis- dressed in her mother's uniform. But there was a difference between the Paula Crock's version of Huntress and her daughter's. Paula was more of the bad guy type- with Artemis, you could never tell.

"Hey, I lived near the Joker in Gotham. Word on the street is that he changes personalities every other hour." She replied. Wally smiled.

"Do you want to… I dunno… come in?"

"Well, would you look at that? The Flash is inviting a well-known criminal into his humble adobe through what of all things? A window. That's right, folks- the Flash is inviting Huntress into his home through his kitchen window." Artemis said with a smile. She got up from her position leaned against the railing.

"Look, do you want to come in or not? I've got the coffee pot running still…" Wally trailed off.

"Hey, I never said 'no.'" Artemis told him. "Move out of the way so I can get in." He moved, and watched with a smirk as Artemis Crock climbed in to his kitchen though a window.

"Dick would get a kick out of this." He remarked.

"Dick would get a kick out of the fact that you didn't notice me sitting there, Kid Clueless." She retorted.

"It's Flash now, Arty."

"Yeah, well what am I supposed to call you? Flash Clueless? That just sounds stupid. Then again, 'Kid Clueless' sounds pretty stupid, too." Wally smirked. He helped her get through the window, taking her hand and helping her balance on the floor. From there, they just sat facing each other, leaning against his counters.

"How about just 'Wally?'" Wally asked. He could anticipate her response, but he just wanted to hear it come from her lips in person.

"Again, that just sounds stupid. Not as stupid as Wallace, but stupid none the less." She replied.

"Glad to hear you love my name so much."

"Never said I hated it, now did I, _Wallace?"_ She retorted, her voice layered with sarcasm.

"No, but you did say it sounds stupid." Artemis snorted. "So- just what were you doing out on my fire escape at-" Wally checked the clock hanging in the living room, "-3:47 in the morning?" Artemis shrugged.

"Bored- I figured if the Flash saw at least one criminal roaming about, he'd come out and try to convince me to switch sides again." She replied. Wally was tempted to raise his eyebrow in that fashion that the Bat was known for using. But then again, Artemis lived in Gotham- she was probably used to eyebrow raising.

"So you decided to sit on his fire escape…?"

"Yep."

"Sounds stalker-ish."

"Sounds like something a certain Wallace West would do."

"Hey, I'm not the one who got caught sneaking up on their…" Wally didn't know what to finish with. They'd dated- but they never exactly… broke up. They'd see each other around, talk to each other at the local coffee shop, kick butt together every now and then. But they didn't date. Not the way they used to, anyway.

"Ninja boyfriend?" Artemis finished. Wally scrunched his eyebrows together.

"Ninja boyfriend?"

"Yep. Ninja boyfriend."

"What do you mean… 'ninja boyfriend.'" Wally asked.

"You know- ninja boyfriend from a rival clan. I'm the ninja girlfriend sent to kill her ninja boyfriend who's in a rival ninja clan by her evil ninja father." Artemis explained.

"Okay… so let me get this straight: we're Romeo and Juliet ninja style?" Wally asked. Artemis nodded. Wally continued.

"So when Dick asks me why the Flash was seen exiting a supply closet with a disheveled Huntress, I'm supposed to say that she's his ninja girlfriend from a rival ninja clan?" Wally asked in reference to that one of the times Artemis had help the league out. Artemis smirked. She knew what he was talking about.

"Yep. You can also tell Dick that Huntress knows about the whole thing with Babs." Artemis said with a smirk.

"Babs? You mean Batgirl? Barbara? Since when did they have a… oh." Wally began, but stopped when he saw the look on Artemis' face. "Ah, so no one knows. **(1)**"

"No one besides you and me- which is how it's going to say. That way, we both have valuable blackmail that can be used at any time against the two of the world's biggest trolls." Artemis said. She wasn't exactly telling the truth, but she wasn't exactly lying, either. But if she told Wally, he'd have more blackmail. And who knew when she'd need to get something out of Dick?

"They're not _that_ much of trolls… anymore." Wally defended. There wasn't much point to defending Nightwing- everyone and their uncle knew about how much of a troll he'd been as the Boy Wonder. Batgirl was a different story- a story much too long to be explained at the moment. Artemis stifled a snort. "Okay- they have their moments." Things got quiet between them. They just stood there smiling at each other. For a moment, things felt the way they did four years ago before everything fell apart.

"You know… I could get used to this. Me, you… us," Wally said quietly. Artemis' eyes gained a new look. Was that… fear? What was she scared of?

"You know why I left, Wally…" Artemis said quietly. Suddenly, they weren't Huntress and Flash- the two lovers nobody could quite figure out do to the fact that one was good and the other was good and bad.

They were just Wally and Artemis. Nothing more, nothing less.

"No, I don't. So please, for the millionth time, why?" When she didn't answer, he continued. "I know it has to do with your family. Your dad was threatening your mom or something. If you didn't comply and become Tigress, he'd do something to her." Wally said, remembering when Batman had told them everything.

Artemis became Huntress after Tigress. For a while, she'd been Artemis again. But she was different. Something her dad had done had changed her in a very bad way. Before, dealing out justice and not death had come naturally to her. After, she suddenly had to stop herself from shooting arrows through the hearts of all the bad guys. She had to stop herself from… killing… them.

"But after that, we don't know a thing." Wally left the statement hanging, hoping that she'd finish.

"Look, Wally… five years is a long time. Things change. Places change. People change." She said quietly. She turned to look at the time. 4:03 in the morning. The sun would be coming up. Cops would start paying attention. If Huntress wanted to get back to her apartment in time to make it to work, she'd need to leave. "I've got to go. I'll… I'll see you around, Wally."

Before going, though, she kissed him. Making it all the more difficult for her to leave. Their conversation hadn't fixed anything. For her, at least. She'd left him leaning against the kitchen counter with a troubled look on his face. She still wasn't fighting the good fight as often as she should. But for him, the conversation had fixed a lot of things.

Wally finally realized who Huntress was. Huntress wasn't Artemis' way of honoring her deceased mother- that's why she'd been able to stop being Tigress. Sportsmaster won and killed Paula Crock while he was at it. Huntress was a mix of Tigress and Artemis, two things that made up Artemis Crock. One was good, the other was evil. As Huntress, Artemis could still be a 'good guy' but use the things she'd buried when she became the hero Artemis. The things she'd unburied when she became Tigress…

Wally watched as she leapt down the fire escape and shot an arrow with a cable attached to it towards a building. She hooked her bow on it and used the cable as a zip cord, sliding towards the ground before running into the shadows.

Her words still rang though his head. _Things change. Places change. __People__ change._ She was right- five years was a long time. A lot of things could happen. A lot of changes could happen. That didn't mean Wally had to like it.

But as he watched Artemis, he realized that some changes were for the better. While Huntress seemed like a bad guy, she wasn't. She was as much as a hero as the Flash and Batman and Superman were. She just had her own methods.

"You're right, Arty. People do change- but not in the way you think."

. . .

**1: Dick and Babs are my OTP. If I expand on this (with other characters and such), I'll explain the mentioned relationship better. But this is a Spitfire story, not a Dick/Babs story. And so I don't get yelled at: I **_**do**_** ship Rob/Zatanna. But only that- I do **_**not**_** ship Nightwing/Zatanna. And I'm pretty sure that that isn't even a couple yet…**

**BTW: Kaldur **_**should**_** be in the season. I've seen Young Justice: Invasion merchandise with him on it- and let me just say, Kaldur has never looked more badass. I think Wally has grown up and become the Flash or something. Artemis is the one person that I don't know about. If you know something, PLEASE say something!**

**Hope to see y'all on the fandom soon,**

**-Sharkbait**


End file.
